Slow start for Worcester's UniverCity Partnership
By jeffrey t. lavery
One year after Worcester spawned a new partnership to encourage more economic participation by its colleges, the effort has delivered few concrete results.
The so-called UniverCity Partnership, conceived to coax more dollars out of tax-exempt educational institutions, seems to be having difficulty getting off the drawing board.In fact, virtually all of the examples that the Partnership showcased at a recent Holy Cross conference were well underway before the group was even formed. These included: WPI’s involvement with Gateway Park, Holy Cross’ South Worcester housing efforts and Clark University’s rehabbing of architectural blights near their campus are all leveraged as prime examples.
"We’ve always maintained that the UniverCity Partnership will build upon earlier and on-going successes of the local campuses," says Armand Carriere, executive director of the UniverCity Partnership. "There wouldn’t be a UniverCity Partnership if the local colleges hadn’t established a track record of commitment to the city."
While a recent undertaking by Assumption College to move their theater department into the Palace Theater can be attributed to the improved dialogue between the college and the city, little else exists as evidence of increased interaction between the two entities. "Other than Assumption’s contributions to the Palace Theater, I’m not familiar with anything on the immediate horizon," says Carriere.
Carriere describes the first year of the Partnership as one devoted to establishing economic benchmarks as opposed to drafting up tangible, large-scale projects. The group intends to research and identify areas that would prove economically beneficial first, then take action. For example, spending by the colleges in the past year on goods and services in Worcester hit $96 million. Carriere wants to increase those outlays and is analyzing the types of spending that now go to vendors outside the region.
This benchmarking approach to growth is a view shared by local colleges, including Holy Cross. The school has reached out in recent years to its South Worcester neighbors, and secured a loan that allowed the South Worcester Neighborhood Center to purchase property and build affordable housing. While the project is touted as a good example of how the schools and Worcester can work together, it, too, was underway before the birth of the UniverCity Partnership. Katherine Robertson, special assistant to the president, notes the need for patience and planning.
"This isn’t philanthropy; it’s a business decision. Hopefully, that’s the direction UniverCity’s strategy will take," says Robertson.
Doubts remain about this conservative approach to boosting the local economy. Ron Charette, executive director of the South Worcester Neighborhood Center, notes that research is no substitute for actual development. "I don’t see any reason to continue to wait around and benchmark," says Charette. "We’re in a go mode."
Meanwhile, the UniverCity Partnership held its first ever awards ceremony in March as a way of acknowledging students involved in campus outreach programs in the community. Among those honored, Patrick Printz, a Quinsigamond Community College student, designed a website for the Wachusett Food Pantry, and Amie Jo Hatch of the Mass. College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences lent assistance to the Doctor Outreach Program for MassMedline.
Worcester’s crystal ball stays hazy
While area schools point to such examples of community activism as proof that the UniverCity Partnership can work, questions still remain as to whether or not two prime goals of the program will actually materialize: job stimulus and the movement of more graduates into jobs in the Central Mass area.
For example, Aaron Skopek and David Fry won UniverCity awards for preparing a video for the Worcester Housing Authority. Although the two will be graduating from Assumption this spring, they doubt that working in the area post-college is an option. "It was good to end our college careers doing this project for Worcester," says Skopek, "but I’ve already decided I want to get away from here."
David Maurrasse, a featured speaker at the Holy Cross Conference hosted by UniverCity, says the possibilities are there for an effective collaboration in Worcester if the schools earmark more of their endowments for community projects. "There needs to be a new kind of economy," says Maurrasse. "The institutions in Worcester need to become economic actors."
Others, however, are skeptical. "You’re talking about relatively small colleges with much smaller endowments than schools in Boston and Cambridge," says Roberta Schaeffer, executive director of the Worcester Regional Research Bureau.
Jeffrey T. Lavery can be reached at jefflavery@wbjournal.com
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